How To Write a Statement of Purpose (SOP)

An SOP can be powerful enough to change the decision of the admission committee, so you must be very careful in choosing your words, vocabularies, and content while writing your statement of purpose or personal statement. It is the media through which the admission committee gets to know you and your background.

What is a Personal Statement/Statement of Purpose?

A Statement of Purpose (SOP), which is also known as a Personal Statement, is a graduate/postgraduate school application that explains about you to the admission committees of the university you are applying to.

In the application it clearly states your academic and professional aims and how you are going to add value to the graduate/postgraduate program or course you are applying to.

An SOP can be powerful enough to change the decision of the admission committee, so you must be very careful in choosing your words, vocabularies, and content while writing your statement of purpose or personal SOP. It is the media through which the admission committee gets to know you and your background.

The importance of writing a statement of purpose

It is decided based on the SOP whether a candidate can apply. This will help the admissions committee determine your outlook on life, career goals, beliefs, experiences, topic expertise, and ambitions. In short, a well-written SOP gives institutions an idea of ​​your whole personality.

This is your chance to tell the admissions committee why you are the best candidate for the program or course and why they should choose you over others. If your academic performance is weak, an excellent piece of SOP will help you compensate by defining your future goals and aspirations. A persuasive SOP also shows how well you can convey that statement.

Personal Statement vs. Statement of Purpose

How do you write a step-by-step statement of purpose?

Now since you know what the statement of purpose is and why it is important, you can start drafting your SOP. At first it can be daunting for you but, BWBS advises you to break down the process into four steps to make it easier to write.

Brainstorming

Firstly, reorganize your work and be excited about the opportunity to write your statement of purpose.

There may be many experiences in your life but you must include only those experiences which are worth sharing and which define your capability and goal. So, before writing the particular statement, you ought to pen down all of your important experiences, achievements and activities. 

Then, you will select those which are directly connected with the intended course. If you want then you can include a number of attributes that make them unique and provide a better position over others. Making a note of these ideas will facilitate deciding the way you would like to highlight these points.

While writing your SOP, ask yourself the following key questions:

• Why do I need this degree?
• Why do I want this degree?
• What are my expectations from this degree?
• Which program or course outline excite me the most?
• Where can this degree professionally and personally take me to?
• How will my professional and personal experiences add value to this program or course?

Write down these answers to put your initial thoughts on paper. This serves as a starting point for creating an outline and writing a first draft.

Create an outline

Then, take the ideas that came up during the brainstorming session and formulate them into an outline that will guide you to write.

Introduction

• A catch that attracts attention.
• A short introduction about yourself and your background with motivation for pursuing a postgraduate degree.

Body

• Your related experiences and achievements that have relevance to this field

• Example 1
• Example 2

• Your professional goals that can relate to the program or course.
• Your enthusiasm to study at this particular institution and what you can bring on the table.

Conclusion

• A brief summary of the information contained in the body highlighting your qualifications and how you can align with the institution.

An outline like the one above provides a guide to follow to keep your objective statement well organized and concise.

Write your first draft

Your statement of purpose should reflect who you are and why you want to study a particular program or course, as well as stand out from other applicants.

Admissions experts already have your transcripts, resume, and test scores. A statement of purpose is your opportunity to describe yourself in your own words.

Talk about your motivation, whether it’s career growth, personal growth, or both.

Show your interest in the institution by mentioning the specialties of the program or course that interest you most.

You have to keep in mind to be yourself while writing your SOP. It helps to drag your audiences’ attention and looks authentic to them. But remember to highlight your personality in the tone of your writing. Your writing should include your angle of understanding of the program or course and how it will be valuable to it.

Edit & Improve

Before submission you must:

• Be sure to follow all instructions, including requirements for margins, spacing, and font size.
• Carefully proofread grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
• Remember not to cross your word limit and pages.
• Students are recommended to use a standard, legible font size (11 or 12 size), and margins should have enough white space to make the statement readable.
• Remember to double-space your statement, if the university requests for it. 
• Your writing must be clear and concise. Make your key points clear and cut through the clutter.
• Leave and come back later with fresh eyes. Sometimes the best ideas come when you are not sitting and staring at your screen.
• Before sending the report, ask someone whom you trust.

What should be included in the statement of purpose?

• Personal background
• Financial background
• Academic details
• Professional experience (full/part-time, voluntary)
• Immediate and long-term goals
• Reasons for selecting a specific institution
• Interest in your chosen field
• Extracurricular activities
• Published works, if applicable
• Submitted papers, if any
• Interests and hobbies

Leave your lasting impression

Your statement of purpose can have a lasting impact if you do it right. This gives you the opportunity to highlight your background and skills to help the admissions committee understand why you are the best candidate for the program or course you are applying to. Above all, focus on how you will stand out in your classroom, the program or course, and the community of your campus. Then you will excel!

Discuss in depth the following points-

Introduce Yourself

Don’t limit yourself with what you think you’re capable of, believe in yourself, and believe you’ve accomplished something significant. Mention that you are a unique individual with many unique qualities.

Write about your accomplishments, hobbies, job experience, volunteer work, future goals, and what interests you about attending this university.

Why you want to study UK?

For this particular section you need to focus on some points and elaborate them like-

>> Why overseas degree is important to you,

>> Business/career opportunities,

>> Offered various opportunities,

>> Lifestyle,

>> Compare the education system, tuition fees, scholarship opportunities, living expenses etc. with other countries.

What is the difference between education system in UK and your home country?

>> Theoretical (exam based) vs Practical (coursework, group work, case study, research based)

How you are uniquely suited or supremely qualified for your interested course?

>> Here, you need to brief discussion on how the course is related to his/her previous educational and professional qualification and work experience

>> Need to elaborate the course modules

>> Offered facilities for the interested course etc.

Why your interested university is best over other universities?

You need to compare other universities to his/her interested university, with categories like: Employability prospects, tuition fees, scholarship, academic facilities, other opportunities, rankings, accommodation, course and modules, location and campus life, etc.

How you will be able to achieve excellence

In this part you must not only write, but also express your enthusiasm. Only if you are passionate about something then only you can show it. The reader must sense that you are sincerely interested about the subject. As a result, it is important to convey in an exciting and convincing manner.

>> Mention the skills which the you will acquire and implement in your practical life

>> How the course and course modules will help you to achieve your future goal

>> If you want to setup your own business or like to join your family business so you need write a plan how you will be able to run your business and how this course will help you.

>> Or if you want to join any company / organization then please mention 3-4 company names, job titles/positions you are interested to join after your studies.

Notes:

** Course name and University name need to be written in full in the body of the SOP.

** If you have studied in the UK before, why do you want to study another Level 7 course and how the course is linked with your previous studies, and how it impacts your intended career plan.

Highly Important:

** You should completely avoid copy and paste/ plagiarizing other people’s work. Universities check through plagiarism detection software to ensure that ideas are unique. The application will be denied if the statement of purpose is copied. As a result, you should be creative in thinking and writing. Remember the admissions committee will evaluate you based on your talents, experiences, and interest in the program, not just your writing ability.

FAQs of Statement of Purpose:

What is the full form of SOP?

SOP defines the Statement of Purpose

Is it necessary to write a statement of purpose for a postgraduate program?

Yes, it is necessary to write and submit a purpose of statement, if you want to go to a graduate school.

Where can I get help from to write a persuasive statement of purpose?

If you don’t know how to write a proper statement of purpose, you must take help from an expert & experienced consultant. You can contact BWBS Education Consultants to write a persuasive statement of purpose who have years of experience in consultancy.